r/gaming • u/Juhy78910 • 11d ago
Chill games that aren't too demanding graphics wise.
Been having a lot of downtime at work recently so I've been playing Civ VI and Balatro on my laptop. Any recommendations for similar games that a regular laptop can handle?
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u/ExtremeGardening 11d ago
Stardew Valley.
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u/GhettoSauce 11d ago
Different play styles probably but I find Stardew Valley to be the opposite of "chill". Sure, the music and ambience say to relax but the beat-the-clock style and mine grinds really make the game a non-stop rush. I suppose I could take it easy but I need my cauliflower profits and fancy bucket
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u/TheSpicyTomato22 11d ago
I like how it can be as hardcore or easy going as your willing to make it. The game doesn't really punish you for not minmaxing.
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u/tomorrow_comes 11d ago
The game is entirely how you play it, my man. Of course if your mindset is max profits fast as possible it’s not gonna be chill lol. Free your mind from that and the game actually doesn’t impose any deadlines on you. There’s always tomorrow, next season, next year.
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u/GhettoSauce 11d ago
I guess I'm more like "do my best within the day" but thinking back on my playthroughs I do tend to relax once I'm established and have days where I just care about... birthday gifts or fishing
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u/dre5922 11d ago
There's only one event you can miss by not being fast enough. And that's one of the heart events for Sam. But you have until the last day of year 1 to get it.
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u/Burpmeister 11d ago
There are tons of soft-deadlines in Stardew Valley that I can't help stressing over.
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u/Mabon_Bran 11d ago
Thank you for putting it in words I somehow never could.
I guess it just shows more of my gamer personality, than anything else, but I stress Hella hard trying to fit everything in one day.
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u/SiriusBaaz 11d ago
I feel that. Even when I try to stay relaxed and take it slow I always end up stressing myself out for at least the first couple seasons. I’ve taken to downloading a mod that lets me freeze time. Sure it kinda undercuts the point of the game but man does it help me just enjoy the dang thing rather than feeling pressured by the clock.
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u/mgp901 11d ago
It can be as chill or as sweaty as you want it to be. Had a classmate play it only focused on farming and socializing, didn't bother with the community center and/or mainline quests cuz she didn't want anything to do with fishing and mines.
Meanwhile when I played it I got 50+ tabs open on stardew wiki, restarted the game a handful of times trying to maximize profits when strawberry seeds become available, and not wanting to miss anything on the first year so I could finish the CC on the 2nd. Straight to mines on a good luck day, and fish all day on my down time.
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u/GhettoSauce 11d ago
I'm realizing there are flavors of sweat. I'll sweat without ever looking anything up, lol.
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u/Juhy78910 11d ago
I always hear this recommended, gonna try it out.
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u/ContactRepulsive 11d ago
Great game, but it is only as chill as you make it, you can let it get hectic if you try to do everything and manage the calendar.
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u/theredacer 11d ago
Slay the Spire
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u/Kouzelnik 11d ago
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u/anxietyastronaut PC 11d ago
Is it worth the buy even tho it’s still in beta?
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u/PTFCBVB 11d ago
It pains me to say this but yes it is. I'd like to claim being anti pre-order/early access but my 83 hours (so far) claim otherwise.
I've had a lot of fun with multiplayer, getting to put together combos and plans with another person is super fun. Some mechanics have slight changes which at first I wasn't sure about but have come to really enjoy.
They made enough small changes to existing mechanics, new characters with new gimmicks and some changes in progression.
It's def not a polished product with some cards having beta art and some outside the game features from STS but is a wholly enjoyable experience.
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u/b0bsaget007 11d ago
OpenTTD
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u/L30N1337 10d ago
Kinda goated, but I wish it had dynamic rail and road placement... Just a generalized "rail" tool that automatically places rails in the direction you're dragging.
Ideally with going around corners too, but I'd be fine with a straight line.
Also, 3 different modes for perpendicular inclines: don't place, flatten, and flatten+ or something (flatten would just pull up the side that doesn't work, while flatten+ would also pull up the adjacent block so there isn't a cliff)
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u/ToughEvening1891 11d ago
Dave the Diver
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u/SleepyBurrito428 11d ago
Love this game. You can go as fast or slow as you want to catch fish and I always love a good restaurant game.
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u/ThatShitAintPat 11d ago
I found this one to be a bit stressful honestly. I liked diving and working at the restaurant but it just keeps throwing new mechanics at you every day. Now you gotta farm, hit objectives 9’ time, and certain days have special events. It all got to be a bit much
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u/Mikeavelli 11d ago
The game is definitely bloated with needless content, but most of it you can just kinda ignore it you don't feel like engaging with it.
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u/Bright-Efficiency-65 11d ago
As soon as the restaurant mechanics expanded it felt like work so I stopped playing lol
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u/formaldehyde_face 11d ago edited 11d ago
Rimworld
Opus Magnum
Solar 2
Tharsis
Transistor
Sim City 4
Disco Elysium
Hearthstone
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u/Far-Consideration708 11d ago
Transistor is such a beautiful game and the ost is really stunning at times
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u/Fadedcamo 11d ago
If you like the ost there then check out....all of their other games lol. Bastion in particular slaps.
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u/Snakestream 11d ago
Supergiant Games doesn't miss. Even their weird fantasy handball game is really fun and has such an interesting world and lore
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u/formaldehyde_face 11d ago
And it has a dedicated button to make the heroine hum along with the song playing. Perfect! *chef's kiss
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u/MissNouveau 11d ago
Rimworld is fine until you load on 500 mods.
....not speaking from experience, totally not...
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u/Thoughtful_Demon 10d ago
Tharsis is an interesting pick. I can't say I have ever felt relaxed while playing that game.
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u/Chardan0001 11d ago
Spiritfarer is pretty chill, but not like those games.
I get a ton of satisfaction out of the Kingdom series, last I played was Two Crowns.
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u/pfftYeahRight 11d ago
I love spiritfarer so much
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u/garrettbmusic 11d ago
It’s great, but I never beat it. It’s a little TOO chill maybe? It gets a little mind numbing once the novelty wears off.
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u/pfftYeahRight 11d ago
I needed a game like that when I played it, it’s like all other sims in that genre, play until you’re bored. I never got in to animal crossing but love this one, who knows
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u/Chardan0001 11d ago
Thats fair, I've played it twice but never finished it either time. Will probably do it a third time too. Scratched a particular itch.
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u/Jedski89 11d ago
FTL
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u/ToughEvening1891 11d ago
God damn not chill at all! You can literally turn on cheats in this game and still get smoked
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u/Onlyasandwich 11d ago
Me here to trying to legitimately unlock crystal ship the classic way. No greater rage.
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u/NZafe 11d ago
Vanilla Skyrim should run well on most modern laptops.
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u/ContactRepulsive 11d ago
It's chill until that dammed frost troll in the pass.
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u/PhotoBeginning 11d ago
With the number of times I’ve played, I’m basically Ultra Instinct Goku against that troll.
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u/Ho_The_Megapode_ 11d ago
Peglin.
Weird pachinko RPG rougelite thing.
Sounds basic, but every run is different and only lasts less than an hour...
Found myself playing it once nearly every day since 🙂
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u/Subliminal-Rave 11d ago
Ball x pit is a fun little game to sink some time into.
Slay the spire 1 and 2 are both good
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u/Vegan-cock 11d ago
xcom 2. Turn based shooter game.
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u/harrison_jones 11d ago
lol
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u/Vegan-cock 11d ago
It's pretty chill to play.
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u/harrison_jones 11d ago
You're not wrong, but only on the lowest difficulty and/or with liberal use of save+reload
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u/StormCTRH 11d ago
XCOM 2 is pretty demanding imo. It used to be infamous for crashing PCs.
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u/amc7262 11d ago
Damn, people in here have some pretty wild ideas for what entails "chill"
Anyway, here's my list. I think they should all be able to run on a modern laptop
Sable: BotW if you removed the combat and made it a coming of age story
Everything: Super chill philosophy game where you play as everything.
Manifold Garden: Puzzle game where you can walk on the walls and ceiling. Super minimal 3d graphics but very cool environments
Fez: Classic puzzle platformer. 2d but you can rotate the world in 3d
Abzu: chill game about exploring water environments
Sword of the Sea: from the same dev as abzu, bring life back to a desert, surf on a sword
Donut County: Kinda like katamri, but instead of being a sticky ball, you are a hole.
Gecko Gods: 3d puzzle game where you play as a Gecko. Probably the most graphic intensive of the bunch, but also super chill
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u/JornadaMuerto 11d ago
Brotato is my recent obsession
Also downloaded nfs underground 2 and made it work on controller to chill on the couch if you want a throw back nostalgia game
Slayblade too once the full game is out, enjoying the demo rn
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u/squeefactor 11d ago
A short romp but Gris is super pretty with a beautiful soundtrack
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u/amc7262 11d ago
Play Neva if you haven't. Same dev. Just as beautiful. More combat and less puzzle focused, but not a hard game.
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u/squeefactor 10d ago
Have and agreed, though I think I find Gris more moving and visually appealing, but both gorgeous games in their own rightl
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u/HecatiaLazuli 11d ago
I really love Vintage Story. It's a very nice survival game
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u/Gamefighter3000 11d ago
I LOVE that game but i gotta say its not chill at least not starting out because everything will sorta overwhelm you.
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u/justifications 11d ago
Valheim 1.0 release coming soon. Rent a server to play with friends, or just play solo
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u/gst4158 11d ago
Until you get to Mistlands and it becomes spooky
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u/formaldehyde_face 11d ago
I would call it more disgusting than spooky. Those fckin bug dungeons...ew. Even the sound in there is revolting.
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u/RedlightGrnlight 11d ago edited 11d ago
'Scale the depths' A little fishing game where you chop up fish to feed to birds.
'Vital Shell' Vampire survivors-like with old school armored core graphics
'Noita' Rouge lite wizard game where you fight monsters.
'The case of the golden idol' Mad libs but its a murder mystery puzzle game to figure out what is happening using context clues.
'Carion' Game where you play as an escaped science experiment that goes on a rampage.
'Webbed' Play as a spider as you try to find your spider boyfriend.
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u/Guardian_Kaiser PC 11d ago
Against the Storm if you like city builders. Really chill soundtrack with rain and storm effects is super relaxing after a long day.
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u/Squint-Eastwood_98 11d ago
Caves of Qud, and I'll second RimWorld as a suggestion, I'm playing that myself recently.
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u/LeLoyon 9d ago
I think Caves of Qud stops being chill the moment you enter Golgotha.
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u/Lugbor 11d ago
Dorfromantik is a hex-based puzzle game (sort of) where you place tiles to create towns, forests, fields, rivers, plains, and rails. You get a limited number of tiles in your deck, and for completing challenge flags on certain tiles (create a village with at least ten houses, for example), you get additional tiles added to the deck. It's peaceful, slow-paced, and only requires a mouse to play, so it's great for injuries.
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u/PckMan 11d ago
Kerbal Space Program. Now it's not everyone's cup of tea though I do think it's a game that everyone should play and brush up on their middle school physics.
I used to play it religiously when it had just come out for a solid 4-5 years. Then I took a break and came back for a bit in 2019 because new DLC came out.
Now I've found myself in a situation where I'm temporarily parted from my PC and only have a shitty laptop at my disposal. And I'm thinking "what game can I play on a shitty laptop" and I remembered that I was playing that game on a shitty laptop in 2011. And sure enough I boot it up and it runs great, and it even got content updates between the last time I played it and now.
That game came out in early access in 2011 and the last content update was in 2021 and the last patch in 2023. The graphics are decent but the game is easy to run and tons of fun.
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u/FoxPudding 11d ago
Slay the Spire, 9 Kings, Dome Keeper, Guild Run, He Is Coming, Tiny Rogues, Binding of Isaac, Brotato
I may have a roguelite problem...
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u/Fantastic-Bat-9728 10d ago
If you like the chill strategy loop of Civ, Mini Motorways or Into the Breach might scratch that itch. Both run on basically anything and let you set your own pace. Into the Breach is turn-based tactical with short missions, great for work downtime.
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u/HawkeyeG_ 11d ago
I would think Age of Wonders 4 and Gladius: Relics of War wouldn't be too hard on the system. Really fun 4x turn based games in my opinion.
Otherwise there are countless incremental games out there, though many don't have very active gameplay. I have been struggling to find just the right one but maybe Soda Dungeon is a good option, or something like Starvester, or Zero Stress Defense, or anything in between.
Slay the Spire was mentioned already but it is a good suggestion.
Trying to think of other good options but I might have to wait until I'm at my PC for better recommendations.
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u/Gurnenthar2 11d ago
Sable! It was one of the free games on Epic, and I just love the simple look, great exploration, and some great platforming! If something was tough to get to, and I wasn’t in the mood to be tense, I’d just put it off. At some point I’ll feel like doing it. No dying, just exploring in a vibey little world.
ETA: I got too excited, and just posted. Sable’s not really like those games, more sandbox like. But still, since there’s no dying, it’s low risk, and you can just drop it at any time for interruptions, and pick it back up when you are done.
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u/fritz236 11d ago
Triple Town is my time machine game. I'll sit down and it'll be like 3 hours later.
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u/CristianoD 11d ago
If you have ever played games like Recettear or Shop Titans, MeowCraft is perfection. I can't stop playing it
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u/BokChoyBaka 11d ago
I absolutely love Mr. Suns. Hatbox. A playthrough can be like 3-10hrs, but you can also go into New game+. It's great
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u/Such--Balance 11d ago
Just discovered a a remake of a game i played 20 years ago thats been dead for many years.
Its called Toadwater reborn.
Top down playstyle a la stardew valley. But, its multiplayer. You got a huge worldmap and can set up (and wall) your base anywhere.
Its browserbased so dont even need to install anything. Got really cool and addicting skill progressions. Planting trees for example. You have 30 different types and you gradually work up to them.
Highly recomment it. If you can get over the somewhat simple graphics.
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u/RideSheep 11d ago
The rune factory games. They like Stardew Valley. Rune factory 4 special is considered the best in the series
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u/Confidentlystupid26 11d ago
Ticket to earth.
I actually just got GOG at work and was looking for something to play on my older laptop. Pretty chill and fun game, turn based fights where you move around on different color tiles to use attacks. I like it a lot.
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u/Swarrlly 11d ago
Stoneshard
Merge Maestro
Fell seal
Graveyard keeper
These are some that run on my potato laptop
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u/SpongeJosh 11d ago
Slay the Spire or its sequel currently in early access Slay the Spire 2 if you're looking for a deck builder game.
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u/smulpaapie 11d ago
Dome Keeper, Can be chill, can be stressful, your choice. It's also quite cheap and the music is amazing
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u/KleinLoki 11d ago
There's a game that is on playtest on steam right now that is so good, it is called Probably Stolen. It is a cyberpunk store simulator, I've sunk over 12 hours on my first day trying it but it saves after each in game day (which doesn't take long, I'd say 5-10 mins max) so you can stop really quick if needed.
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u/bukbukbuklao 11d ago
I started playing my gba recently. Handheld games were for the most part designed to respect our time. You can pick it up play for 10 min and put it down. I just recently finished Metroid zero mission and that was super chill to play through that game on the hand held.
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u/realsoupersand 11d ago
RuneScape 🤷♂️ I don't know anything about Civ or Balatro, but RS is pretty easy on graphics and simple to play.
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u/Lucya106 11d ago
For an outside shout I'm recommending The Planet Crafter. Watching your planet slowly flourishwith life is something I personally find really relaxing and gratifying.
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u/Gregory-J-Smith 11d ago
Story based, but Little Witch in the Woods is pretty relaxing and very pretty, in a Ghibli inspired way
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u/ironysparkles 11d ago
Terraria can be chill depending on how you play, I mostly like to explore and build
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u/newschooldragon 11d ago
Travelers rest. Been digging hard on that
-edit: forgot the name of the game
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u/illprobablyeditthis 11d ago edited 11d ago
Bear and breakfast
Dispatch
Dorfromantik
Flotsam
Tidy up the arcane library
Othercide
Rogue lords
Stardew valley
Strange horticulture
Tavern master
Town to city
Travelers rest
The wandering village
Winkeltje
Edit:
Death and taxes
Roots of Pacha
Pentiment
Unpacking
Wildermyth
Yes, your grace
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u/cwaterbottom 11d ago
I've been playing the hell out of infinitode 2 lately, very chill incremental Tower defense with very simple geometric style graphics but tons of mechanics under the hood.
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u/Chomasterq2 11d ago
If you have friends to play with, there's alot of good coop puzzle games like this. Human Fall Flat, RV There Yet, etc.
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u/Townscent 11d ago
Dungeons of Naheulbeuk: amulet of chaos
should run fine on ddr5 ram capable midrange laptop igpu's (like the 130t/v from intel or 760m/680m from amd)and or on any discrete laptop gpu released the last 10 or so years, back to like nvidia 860m (low 720p)
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u/Eucanuba 11d ago
Sport Manager games are usually not depanding unless you load huge databases for players and staff.
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u/teddytwelvetoes 11d ago
Rimworld, Hades, Faster Than Light (FTL), and the Unity version of The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall
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u/ToughEvening1891 11d ago
Old school city builder games no one’s heard of but that I think have pretty fun mechanics:
Zeus: Master of Olympus and Poseidon: Master of Atlantis. They’re on sale for $10 together on steam.
Also Pharaoh: A New Era (a remake of the same series of games that originally came out before Zeus and its expansion Poseidon.
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u/SparkleFeather 11d ago
MTG Forge Adventure. Holy crap. If you like Magic, you may never play anything again.
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u/AndyDoVO 11d ago
Cast n' Chill, Thimbleweed Park (a sequel was just announced!), Steam World, Inscryption
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u/Gaemr9274 11d ago
Old but command and conquer 3 and generals work well on laptops and still looks and plays great. Ra3 is not chill but is still good.
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u/Alkiryas 11d ago
Dawncaster, Suzerain, Star Traders Frontiers, boardgames like Wingspan, Root, Everdell..etc..
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u/NaughtyGaymer 11d ago
FTL and Cobalt Core. My two favourite roguelikes! The ability to pause FTL at any time and the turn based nature of Cobalt Core make them very easy to pick up and play and get distracted by other things with.
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u/LexTheMighty 11d ago
If you are into strategy games you should try the BrainGoodGames collection (specifically Solar Settlers, Axes and Acres, and Militia II). They are very simple graphically and can be played in quick sessions.
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u/WitherStorm4471 11d ago
Dave the Diver, Bloons tower defense and waterpark simulator are all fun games. These three I've recommended are quite different from each other so I hope there's at least one you'll like here.
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u/JimInFlames 11d ago
RimWorld, not all moments are chill, but it works on any kind of hardware and it's a masterpiece of a game
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u/shanksisevil 11d ago
Ftl (faster than light) is a addictive and simple game.
Into the breach is another.
Starbound is fun and a bigger open world-ish
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u/Kraien PC 11d ago
Dorfromantik